1. Field of the Invention
The present invention in general relates to automated techniques for making payments, and in particular relates to systems for consolidating and streamlining payment activities through the utilization of a third party payment service provider. The present invention also relates to a system which allows for the delivery of payment information independent of the payment activity.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Accounting and disbursement procedures for oil and gas activities are rather complicated. Typically, the oil and/or gas producing properties have royalty and working interest payments which are due many times throughout the year to a large number of individuals. As time passes, the number of individuals and companies who expect, and do, receive payment from the party responsible for the payment of funds increases, while the amounts due to them decreases. An increase in the number of payees occurs as royalty and working interests are passed down through the generations and amounts due to the payees decreases, both due both to this division of ownership, and declining production from the properties. In some cases, the payments are so small that the transaction costs associated with making the distributions are disproportionately and uneconomically large. Sometimes, the printing, postage and administrative costs are significant when compared to the payment due to those individuals having a marginal or negligible interest in the property.
A similar problem occurs in the accounting and payment activities for governmental entitlement programs. This is especially true since typically each entitlement program has an associated accounting and disbursement burden. The standards for eligibility to the available entitlement programs include common factors such as income level, age, and disability status. A citizen that is entitled to benefits under one entitlement program is generally eligible for entitlement benefits from other types of entitlement programs. Therefore, there is considerable duplication of efforts in the accounting and disbursement systems for governmental entitlement programs.
Similar problems arise for the accounting and disbursement systems for investment instruments such as stocks and bonds. Payments, such as dividends, are typically made at least once a year for such financial instruments. If a company's economic performance is poor, the dividends may be small or negligible in value. Additionally, over the last decade, an increase in investment activities by relatively small unsophisticated investment entities, (e.g., individuals) has resulted in smaller and smaller blocks of stock being held for long intervals by such entities. The cost and burden associated with the reporting and payment of dividends to such small investors are significant. In some instances, the printing, postage and administrative costs are significant when compared to the dividend amounts actually paid.
The three specific examples discussed above (the oil and gas industry, government entitlement programs, and the investment industry) share common features. First, a payment obligation exists for a multitude of payor entities. A relatively large number of payee entities expect regular payments from the payors. Secondly, it is likely that any particular payee entity expects payments from multiple payor entities. For example, an individual who actively invests in oil and gas exploration projects is likely to expect payments from several payor entities. Likewise an unemployed, disabled, or impoverished individual is likely to expect multiple payments from governmental entities under a variety of entitlement programs. Likewise, an investor is likely to expect regular dividends from multiple payor entities. Third, the payments being made from the payor entities to the payee entities is frequently disproportionately small in comparison with the administrative and direct expenses associated with making such payment. For example, in the oil and gas industry, it is common for an investor to receive relatively small (and frequently decreasing) royalty or working interest payments from payor entities. Likewise, as governmental entitlement programs are reduced in size and scope due to budget constraints, the payments which are made from the payor entities to the payee entities are decreasing in amount, while the expense associated with administering and making payments increases at least in an amount comparable to inflation. Likewise, in economic downturns, it is not uncommon for an investor to receive rather insignificant dividends from a variety of payor entities. Fourth, while the expense associated with making such payments may be large in comparison to the amount of the payments, such payments must nevertheless be made with regularity in order to prevent the loss of investor confidence (in the case of the oil and gas or investment industries) and in order to fulfill statutory and regulatory obligations (in the case of the oil and gas industry and entitlement programs). Fifth, independently of how payments are made, a relatively large number of entities may expect from the payors periodic reporting relating to the payments which are mandated by contract, statute, or regulation.
Numerous other commercial and financial arrangements exist which present similar problems, insofar as the administrative and expense burden associated with an accounting and distribution system is frequently disproportionately large in comparison with the amount of the payments being made. These other examples will not be discussed in this present application, in order to simplify this description, but can nonetheless be improved through the present invention.